'Power Book II: Ghost': "Deal or No Deal" Ep.7 Recap

Previously on Power Book II: Ghost, Dru (Lovell Adams-Gray) starts a war with the Russians against his family’s wishes. Saxe (Shane Johnson) spills the tea about Tariq (Michael Rainey Jr.) to Lauren (Paige Hurd), dropping seeds of doubt in her head. Riq kicks both Brayden (Gainni Paolo) and Effie (Alix Lapri) out of the business for what they did to Lauren, only to learn he is going to need their help to get from under Noma’s (Caroline Chikezie) control.

Monet Is Under Pressure

Monet (Mary J. Blige) quickly learns that killing Lorenzo (Berto Colon) didn’t solve any problems. It only escalated them. The war between the Russians and the Tejadas is honestly her fault because she set the wheels in motion when she contracted her son’s new boo/play cousin Gordo (Erik Hernandez) to kill her husband. The episode opens up with the Russians taking out their crew, with the leader sending a message to Cane (Woody McClain) telling them they will lose the war for killing Pavel, and then a conversation between Monet and Gordo.

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Monet is trying to tie up loose ends and wants Gordo to stop messing with Dru because she fears losing him. Gordo isn’t biting and tells her she is scared at the idea that their mother is why their papi is six feet under, and he will not stop seeing Dru. Monet meets with Cane, Brayden, and Riq, and she sees how deep they are in with Noma. Out of ideas, she looks to Riq for a plan, but he’s too busy sulking about Lauren, aka the “wire-wearing b*tch.” Riq tells Mona he can get the heat off them and onto the Russians with the help of a friend. All he needs to know is when Russian’s next re-up will happen. The person Riq is referring to is none other than Councilman Tate (Larenz Tate), and he convinces the power-hungry politician to pull some strings that will tip the cops off and help him land the biggest drug bust in city history, which will help boost his hobbling campaign. Tate can’t resist, the bust goes down as planned, and Tate looks like a winner while the Russians are no longer on the streets.

 Salim Plays Himself Big Time

The couple we could care less about, Diana (LaToya Tonodeo) and Salim (Petey McGee), ended abruptly last week after King Hotep got too bold and disrespected her dead papi at his repast. Like any sucker, Salim tries to win her back with some corny poetry and puts pressure on Diana in front of the whole crowd at a school talent show. Diana leaves and goes to the stockroom, and Salim follows. He’s big mad that Diana didn’t care for him putting his heart out there. He also accuses Diana of sleeping with Riq, which she did last week, but she tells him that it is none of his business and that she will pay him back for the books. Salim gets out of pocket, saying that it was only a matter of time before she starts messing with a drug-dealing murderer like Riq, and Diana slaps him. He then says he knows Diana was selling drugs out of the store, she denies that accusation, and he tells her to clear her sh*t out, “She’s done,” and he will figure out how to expose her.

Diana Comes With Receipts On Salim

Diana asks her mother for some advice, and Monet hilariously offers to assassinate Salim, but Diana eventually comes up with her own plan. It turns out that Salim’s pro-Black stance is all a front for his privileged upbringing. He doesn’t come from a single Black mother household or live in the hood. He was raised in the suburbs and raised by two wealthy white parents. She even comes with receipts in the form of a photo of him holding an equestrian trophy. Diana tells Salim she won’t expose him if he cuts his hours at the store, gives them to less fortunate students, gives her job back, and gives her a significant raise. He has no choice but to agree.

Brayden Learns Weston Holdings Is Cooking The Books

The cat is out of the bag. During a smash session, Keke (Moriah Brown) reveals to Brayden that she knows all about the drug business he has going on in Weston Holdings. Brayden begins pillow-talking, telling her about the rift between him and Riq. Keke then puts the idea in Brayden’s head that he doesn’t need Riq and that he should be running things. Moving along, Brayden discovers a dark secret at Weston Holdings when trying to figure out why the servers for Crash Coin are failing. While doing so, Brayden discovers a hidden area where the shredding of documents is going on. Brayden looks at one of the books and discovers that the company is nothing more than a huge Ponzi scheme that would make Bernie Madoff blush. He also realizes that if the company goes belly up, he will lose Tariq’s trust fund and the money Cane told him to keep clean, which won’t be good. Brayden tells Keke what he learns, and she admits to knowing all about it, and what makes matters worse, Uncle Lucas (David Walton) does too, and it’s his plan. Apparently, Weston Holdings was not as successful as Brayden believed, and this Ponzi scheme has been keeping the company afloat for years. Lucas also knows that Brayden and Riq have been selling drugs at the company and tells his nephew he won’t go to the authorities if they let him in on the action.

Monet Kills Two Birds With One Stone

Running out of options, Monet finds a way to tie up her loose ends and avoid an all-out war with the Russians. Monet uses Kai (Sean Nelson), the guy Dru wanted to put his hands and feet on for saying slick stuff about his mother while at his father’s repast. Dru walks into the house and sees the two catching up over wine and cheese, and he is not happy. Monet explains to him that she is trying to secure much-needed help to deal with the Russians. Once she gets Dru to calm down, he tells her about what’s happening with Gordo and his family and how they want a more significant cut, but Gordo somehow convinced his brothers to chill and take a vote. Monet notices her son really likes Gordo, and Dru admits to falling for him, and she tells him always to keep his ear. Monet has another meeting with Kai, and it turns out she planned to kill him all along. She attempts to stab him but he gets the best of her. Cane comes in and saves her. She takes her burner phone and sends a message saying she thinks the Russians are on to them. It turns out she sent that message to Gordo. Dru discovers this while he is in the shower and kills him. She also pins Pavlo’s murder on Kai and delivers his head to the Russian boss to broker a peace treaty with him. So, no, Gordo and the Russians are dealt with, but in the process, she hurt her son, who was madly in love with Gordo.

Riq Confronts Effie, Cane Sees An Opportunity

Riq knows the feds are coming and is desperately trying to contact Lauren, who is ignoring him. He is also trying to get from under Noma’s control, and he has a plan, but he needs to speak with Effie, but the two are currently at odds. Riq stops by her dorm to speak with his ex because he needs that family photo of Noma and her daughter on Effie’s phone to get his plan in motion. The two argue, and he gets Effie to say she killed Lauren because she knew he couldn’t do the job. Effie didn’t know that Riq was recording her the whole time. He gives that evidence to Lauren, confirming her suspicions about Lauren and proving he had nothing to do with her death. In return, Lauren tells him the feds are moving in and that they know about everything. Lauren also tells Riq that Saxe is the one giving them all of the information and that he was the one who told her about his past, revealing to Riq that Saxe is mole. She also promises not to say anything to stall the RICO investigation as much as possible. Cane is using the rift between Riq and Effie to move in. He offers to help Effie by supplying her with drugs to sell and even offers to pay her tuition, something Effie doesn’t want him to do. Effie learns during a meeting with the finance office that her tuition for the year was paid in full, possibly making her more open for Cane.

Diana’s Worst Nightmare Happens

The team also doesn’t know that the camera on the school’s roof has captured photos of Diana dropping off drugs in the stash box. Doing so made her the target of the fed’s RICO investigation. During what seemed to be a typical family dinner, they storm into the Tejada residence and arrest Diana. Monet screams at her daughter not to say anything, and they take her away, and the episode ends. You can see accurate and hilarious reactions to this week’s episode in the gallery below. Photo: Starz / Power Book II: Ghost

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